Google Pixel 3 slated for October 9 launch

Rumours surrounding Google’s upcoming flagship, the Pixel 3 XL, have been surfacing over the internet for quite some time, but a report last month claims that Pixel 3 XL has been up for sale in Ukra....

Google’s next generation of Pixel devices will be launched on October 3 in New York. The company has officially sent out invites for an event that reads simple “I <3 NY” phrase. While the devices have been leaked thoroughly in the previous months, Google probably doesn’t need to promote the announcement.

Rumours surrounding Google’s upcoming flagship, the Pixel 3 XL, have been surfacing over the internet for quite some time, but a report last month claims that Pixel 3 XL has been up for sale in Ukraine for $2,000 a piece – which is supposed to be a stolen shipment.

“Russian blog Rozetked has managed to get its hands on what is likely to be a stolen shipment of Pixel 3 XL’s and has published extensive details, images, and photos captured with the handset’s camera,” Techradar.com reported.

We believe, the Ukranian seller is also likely the cause of earlier leaks that revealed retail packaging and contents, including what looks to be a set of wired Pixel Buds.

According to the leaked photos, the Google Pixel 3 XL will come with a deep notch and sizable chin bezel with a 2,960 x 1,440p display, although the actual screen size it not mentioned.

There will be wired Pixel Buds in the box, and the Pixel 3 XL will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor and will run on Android 9 Pie. The sides and rear of the Pixel 3XL looks identical to the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL. One notable change is the relocation of the SIM card slot to the bottom of the phone, next to the USB-C port.

In August, a Russian blogger in a new unboxing video has hinted that the bigger one – Pixel 3 XL -- will come with 6.7-inch screen and 3430mAh battery.

Since the release of first Google Pixel device in 2016, the company has sold 3.9 million Pixel and Pixel 2 smartphones in 2017. Though it represents a tiny fraction compared to global smartphone sales being 1.5 billion units, it is also less than a week’s sales of Apple iPhone X, IDC reported in February.

“The rate of sales has doubled in 2017 and moving forward Google’s Pixel sales are at least heading in the right direction,” said Francisco Jeronimo, Research Director, IDC.

Google’s US market share has also gone up from 1.8 per cent to 2.8 per cent. Google recently closed $1.1 billion deal to acquire HTC’s mobile division where in a team of HTC talent will join Google as part of its hardware department.